1. Field of the Technology
The present technology relates to a printing apparatus capable of refunding a difference between an advanced payment in electronic money and a charge for printing or the like.
2. Description of the Related Art
As a printing apparatus, there have been a printing apparatus that receives and prints print data transmitted from an information processor such as a personal computer, or a printing apparatus that directly prints image data stored in a memory card or a universal serial bus (hereinafter, referred to as a “USB”) memory through a memory card reader or USB terminal.
The printing apparatuses described above include a printing apparatus to which is connected a payment apparatus for a payment before printing by presenting an integrated circuit (hereinafter, referred to as an “IC”) card charged with electronic money. The payment-apparatus-connected printing apparatus refunds a difference between the amount of money actually required for printing after the printing and the pre-charged amount of money in electronic money, by requesting re-presentation of the IC card.
The reason for prepayment is that adverse cases may be considered by a user or manager, such as when printing cannot be completed due to lack of the balance during a print job or when copies are taken without rightly paying the charge, without being charged, by removing the IC card from the card reader, before paper is discharged.
When prepayment is made, the printing apparatus calculates the charge that should be paid, based on whether color printing or monochrome printing is made, and the number of print pages. The number of print pages is included in the information on the print job, such that the printing apparatus can easily grasp the number of pages to be printed. However, since it is difficult to determine whether the input print data is for color or monochrome, in the short period of time before printing starts, generally, the user designates whether color printing or monochrome printing is made and pays in advance in accordance with the designation.
For example, when a color-monochrome mixed print job including both of color printing and monochrome printing is carried out with monochrome designated, all pages are printed in monochrome and payment is charged at the price of monochrome printing for all of the pages. Further, when the color-monochrome mixed print job is carried out with the color designated, all pages are printed in color, and even though monochrome pages are included, payment is charged at the price of color printing for all of the pages. However, since the price of color printing is paid even for the monochrome pages when it is designated that all of the pages are printed in color, it is disadvantageous for the user.
As described above, since monochrome print data is for monochrome printing even if color printing is designated, when the user designates color printing, a difference may be generated between the pre-charged amount of money and the amount of money for the actual print result. Although it is required to print in an automatic color-monochrome mode in which whether print data is color or monochrome is automatically determined and printing is carried out, in order to determine whether print data is color or monochrome, it is necessary to convert the print data into cyan-magenta-yellow-black (CMYK) data and a process that takes time is necessarily carried out. That is, in order to charge the exact amount of money a process of converting print data for all pages into the CMYK data is necessary, such that the user is made wait for a long time. In order to remove the disadvantage for the user described above without making the user wait for a long time, when there is a difference, a technique of reliably refunding the difference to the user is required.
Further, even if the user cancels printing or changes the print setup during a print job, there may be a case where a difference is generated between the pre-charged amount of money and the amount of money for the actual print result. When a difference is generated, as described above, between the pre-charged amount of money and the amount of money for the actual print result, implementing a technique to reliably refunding the difference to the user is a challenge.
A charge collection system is disclosed in Japanese Unexamined Patent Publication JP-A 2007-140990, which is a first example of the related art. Printing is carried out, after the charge collection system subtracts the amount of price for the selected entire print job from the balance in an IC card and then collects the price. When the printing process is stopped halfway before being normally completed, the price for the non-processed part is refunded, with the IC card placed.
A charging system is disclosed in Japanese Unexamined Patent Publication JP-A 2007-299293, which is a second example of the related art. The charging system draws an estimate amount of money for printing, out of an account, as electronic money and deposits the money. Further, when printing is finished, the difference between the deposited money and the amount of money for printing becomes a non-settled money, and settlement is made based on the account and the non-settled money when an IC card is touched, in response to a settlement screen displayed when there is non-settled money.
A job performing apparatus that has functions of charging and refunding, using electronic money is disclosed in Japanese Unexamined Patent Publication JP-A 2009-301244, which is a third example of the related art. The job performing apparatus charges the use amount of money required for performing a job before starting the job, and can refund within a predetermined period by setting a medium for payment in a paying device, when the balance is generated.
However, although all of the first to third examples of the related art perform settlement such as refunding, by presenting again an IC card when a difference is generated between the pre-charged amount of money and the amount of money for the print result, a user may return with the printed recording paper after printing is finished, missing settlement. Further, when settlement is not made and how the next print job is started and how to settle the difference that is not settled from the user may be considered.